Hungrier on rest days?

JulieG1443
JulieG1443 Posts: 43
in Health and Weight Loss
I usually do 6 workouts a week where I burn at least 500 cals for each workout and I do at least 30 minutes of strength and 25 minutes of cardio.
I find on the days that I workout I'm less hungry which I know is a similar situation for many other people who are working out at this level, however, on my rest days I find that I am SO hungry and I just absolutely crave carbohydrates so I eat bowls and bowls of cereal like weetabix or bran flakes with unsweetened soya milk and I'll also crave yogurts.. I try my very best to add protein to my diet and end up hitting my protein requirements every day or I'm over my protein, so protein cannot be the problem!..

For example, today I've already had 3 breakfasts consisting of 2 bowls of cereal and a bowl of fruit salad with yogurt, for lunch I had a massive tuna sandwich with chilli beans and two pots of weight watchers yogurt. - I need help!

P.s I'm not mistaking thirst for hunger as the minimum I usually drink a day is 3 litres.

Does any one else get as hungry as I do or is it just me?

Replies

  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    Also, I'm a teenager - so higher calorie burn than someone who is much older? Not sure about this?
  • bhall33
    bhall33 Posts: 55 Member
    On rest days I usually get hungry out of pure boredom. Keep yourself busy and your mind off of food.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 22,147 Member
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    What are maintenance calories?

    ATM I've got my calories set to my BMR and if I exercise I usually eat my calories back which I know people always say oh my god don't do that but it works for me as the days I don't eat my exercise calories back the next day I can't workout for as long or as hard.
  • aduffy89
    aduffy89 Posts: 7
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    Do you still lose weight by doing this? The last two days I have found myself in the same situation as the OP. I couldn't work out due to various reasons so I found myself just picking at foods and being hungry even after I had had my main meal. So I decided to just allowed myself to eat my maintenance which is 2,084 calories both days. Now I'm afraid it'll mess up my effort for this week and I'm thinking of increasing my calorie deficit even further today and tomorrow to make up for it.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 22,147 Member
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    What are maintenance calories?

    ATM I've got my calories set to my BMR and if I exercise I usually eat my calories back which I know people always say oh my god don't do that but it works for me as the days I don't eat my exercise calories back the next day I can't workout for as long or as hard.

    Maintenance calories means you would eat the number of calories it takes to maintain your weight, not lose or gain. Have you tried using the tools on MFP to set your calories? Eating just your BMR is awfully low, even if you are eating your exercise calories (which I'm really glad you're doing). You might be surprised just how much you can eat and still lose weight, and you'll probably feel better and have more energy doing it! :flowerforyou:
  • rattler0812
    rattler0812 Posts: 40 Member
    I work with teens almost everyday of the week. There are extra calories burned each day I work with them because of how nutty they drive me. But I have fun with them.

    My observations of them is that activity is the key to the eating. Your body is always looking for something to do other than the basics of survival (breathing, heart pumping, etc.). When you take away what is considered part of the "normal routine", your body will try and find something to fill in the gap. And usually it's the easiest thing available.

    Each of the teenage young men and young women that I work with has this dilemma. Their weekly schedule keeps them busy. Then on the weekends, when things calm down, their patterns get weird. When I take the young men out on campouts and other weekend excursions as part of their activities, I keep them busy. Then they are eating regular meals and staying in their normal calorie burn pattern.

    A day off from working out is a good thing. But, remember that your body doesn't understand days off. You have to trick it at times. One thing you might try and do is on your days off, have smaller meals. I'm shootin' from the hip here on this. But, a small breakfast of say 250 calories could be a good start and then a mid-morning meal of about the same calorie intake. Make lunch 300 calories with a mid-afternoon snack of about 200. Dinner at about 600 calories with an evening snack (no too late in the evening) of no more than 200 calories. Now, I'm no nutritionist. This is just me thinking about what could work based on my experience. That's 1,800 calories right there. I don't know what your daily intake is. But, this can give you an idea on how you can trick your body a bit.

    Again, don't take my full word on it. I am not a nutritionist. But just speaking from my own personal experience.
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    I get this too!

    I think tbh it's less actual hunger and more that you don't have those extra workout calories, so you know your eating less which just makes you feel hungrier.

    You could go with what somebody else said and just eat maintenance, this is the amount you'd need each day to maintain your weight (but you just eat that much 1 day a week only) At the moment I assume you're set to around a 500 calorie deficit each day (to lose 1lb a week) so therefore on your one rest day, you would eat 500 extra, meaning that your weekly deficit is 3000 instead of 3500.
    Provided you are on track as normal on your other days, it's not going to be anything bad for your weight loss, and if it helps stop you overeating then it's a bonus! :)
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 22,147 Member
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    Do you still lose weight by doing this? The last two days I have found myself in the same situation as the OP. I couldn't work out due to various reasons so I found myself just picking at foods and being hungry even after I had had my main meal. So I decided to just allowed myself to eat my maintenance which is 2,084 calories both days. Now I'm afraid it'll mess up my effort for this week and I'm thinking of increasing my calorie deficit even further today and tomorrow to make up for it.
    I do still lose weight doing this, with one or two rest days a week. If you get too hungry and start picking at foods, chances are you'll eat well over maintenance, so I find I do much better if I don't allow myself to get too hungry in the first place. I'm in this for the long haul, so I'd rather lose the weight without making myself miserable if I have a choice, and I do! :smile:
  • rattler0812
    rattler0812 Posts: 40 Member
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    What are maintenance calories?

    ATM I've got my calories set to my BMR and if I exercise I usually eat my calories back which I know people always say oh my god don't do that but it works for me as the days I don't eat my exercise calories back the next day I can't workout for as long or as hard.

    Maintenance calories means you would eat the number of calories it takes to maintain your weight, not lose or gain. Have you tried using the tools on MFP to set your calories? Eating just your BMR is awfully low, even if you are eating your exercise calories (which I'm really glad you're doing). You might be surprised just how much you can eat and still lose weight, and you'll probably feel better and have more energy doing it! :flowerforyou:

    I have to agree with PJilly. In my workouts, people would tell me not to eat back the calories. But I found myself more prone to injury. I didn't have the energy to focus on my workouts and my body wasn't getting the nutrients it needed to rebuild muscle or any other area that was being worked on during my workouts.

    Use the MFP tools to get things focused around you specifically. My wife had to tweak a few things as she has PCOS and there are things she has to have in lower quantities to manage the PCOS and lose weight. It's trickier for her. But, she knows what she needs and she has customized the settings to that it is specific to her needs.
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    Do you still lose weight by doing this? The last two days I have found myself in the same situation as the OP. I couldn't work out due to various reasons so I found myself just picking at foods and being hungry even after I had had my main meal. So I decided to just allowed myself to eat my maintenance which is 2,084 calories both days. Now I'm afraid it'll mess up my effort for this week and I'm thinking of increasing my calorie deficit even further today and tomorrow to make up for it.

    I personally don't do this, but it's not going to ruin your whole week!

    Say for example you have a deficit on 500 each day, that's 3500 a week (1lb of fat lost)
    If, 2 days a week, you decide to eat maintenance, you are taking that daily deficit away, creating one of 2500 a week. This is still a deficit, so you WILL still lose weight. It will just be slightly slower. Sometimes people even find it helps their weight loss.

    Cheat days (or whatever you decide to call them) are only counter-productive when you eat above maintenance, more than the deficit you've already acquired, so if Mon-Sat you create a 3000 calorie deficit, then on Sunday, eat 3000 ABOVE maintenance (around 5000 cals?) then you've ruined your week. Otherwise, you'll be fine :)
  • Jade17694
    Jade17694 Posts: 584 Member
    Yup...i also get 'hungry' out of pure boredom. I don't give in though...other than the odd bowl of cereal!
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    I often get hungrier on rest days too. What has helped me is to give my body a rest from a calorie deficit as well and eat maintenance calories on my rest days. I find it to be rejuvenating, and it keeps me from getting so hungry that I end up overeating in a huge way.

    What are maintenance calories?

    ATM I've got my calories set to my BMR and if I exercise I usually eat my calories back which I know people always say oh my god don't do that but it works for me as the days I don't eat my exercise calories back the next day I can't workout for as long or as hard.

    Maintenance calories means you would eat the number of calories it takes to maintain your weight, not lose or gain. Have you tried using the tools on MFP to set your calories? Eating just your BMR is awfully low, even if you are eating your exercise calories (which I'm really glad you're doing). You might be surprised just how much you can eat and still lose weight, and you'll probably feel better and have more energy doing it! :flowerforyou:

    Ah! Ok, my maintenance calories are way over 2000 around 2400 I think I used a bunch of calorie calculators to make my own guess at it.. but I could never eat that much without feeling bad about it and just generally ill at the end of the day! Lol

    I've been really confused about the whole eating exercise calories thing but the way in which I'm doing it now I feel that I am able to MAKE myself exercise every day, because then if I exercise then I'm able to put more food in my mouth!

    Thanks for the help :)
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    I work with teens almost everyday of the week. There are extra calories burned each day I work with them because of how nutty they drive me. But I have fun with them.

    My observations of them is that activity is the key to the eating. Your body is always looking for something to do other than the basics of survival (breathing, heart pumping, etc.). When you take away what is considered part of the "normal routine", your body will try and find something to fill in the gap. And usually it's the easiest thing available.

    Each of the teenage young men and young women that I work with has this dilemma. Their weekly schedule keeps them busy. Then on the weekends, when things calm down, their patterns get weird. When I take the young men out on campouts and other weekend excursions as part of their activities, I keep them busy. Then they are eating regular meals and staying in their normal calorie burn pattern.

    A day off from working out is a good thing. But, remember that your body doesn't understand days off. You have to trick it at times. One thing you might try and do is on your days off, have smaller meals. I'm shootin' from the hip here on this. But, a small breakfast of say 250 calories could be a good start and then a mid-morning meal of about the same calorie intake. Make lunch 300 calories with a mid-afternoon snack of about 200. Dinner at about 600 calories with an evening snack (no too late in the evening) of no more than 200 calories. Now, I'm no nutritionist. This is just me thinking about what could work based on my experience. That's 1,800 calories right there. I don't know what your daily intake is. But, this can give you an idea on how you can trick your body a bit.

    Again, don't take my full word on it. I am not a nutritionist. But just speaking from my own personal experience.

    Thank you very much for your help! This makes a lot of sense as the more I get my body into routine its constantly reminding me every 2 hours "ok your hungry you gotta eat, you gotta workout and go!".. But days like today are hard for me as I usually use saturdays and sundays as studying days so I'm just sitting around typing and drinking endless cups of tea.
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    I think it's so important not to make yourself miserable with food lol if you do it your just abusing your body in a mentally demanding way which can result in a whole load of physical abuse and exhaustion!
  • EmilyinPitt
    EmilyinPitt Posts: 8
    Actually, this sounds JUST like me. I always attributed it to two things: (1) lack of activity = boredom; boredom = grazing or pleasure-eating for entertainment, and (2) the lack of that dopamine burst that people get from exercise (particularly with intense exercise) that acts as an appetite suppressant. If you work out a lot, you probably actually NEED a lot of calories, particularly if you are doing a lot of stuff that requires the muscles to heal up. However, high activity triggers production (and in some theories, increased sensitivity to) dopamine. Dopamine (which I am probably spelling wrong...) affects alertness, agression, attention, is a natural appetite suppressant.

    :)
  • Karstenf
    Karstenf Posts: 85 Member
    Eat away! Your rest day is for muscle rebuilding and recuperation, so if your body says "I want food" then feed it. You sound like you have a good handle on where to limit yourself, so you should be able to eat what you want on your rest day. I have read many articles that say to "spike" your calorie intake once a week anyway. This lets your body know that there is not a shortage of fuel, and your metabolism can keep revving up as planned. Plus, you're still a teenager. You probably burn up the calories from a bowl of cereal before you put the dish in the sink! :laugh: Just listen to your body, and enjoy the journey! :drinker:
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    Actually, this sounds JUST like me. I always attributed it to two things: (1) lack of activity = boredom; boredom = grazing or pleasure-eating for entertainment, and (2) the lack of that dopamine burst that people get from exercise (particularly with intense exercise) that acts as an appetite suppressant. If you work out a lot, you probably actually NEED a lot of calories, particularly if you are doing a lot of stuff that requires the muscles to heal up. However, high activity triggers production (and in some theories, increased sensitivity to) dopamine. Dopamine (which I am probably spelling wrong...) affects alertness, agression, attention, is a natural appetite suppressant.

    :)

    Wow! Oh gosh that's a lot to think about haha! I can definitely support the word GRAZE.. Much like a pregnant woman but with healthier choices lol.
  • Sofithomas
    Sofithomas Posts: 118
    YES this is me in a nutshell, partly because I think my muscles are screaming FEEEED MEEE and also admittedly boredom and klooking for a void to fill!!

    I've learnt going for a leisurely walk, doing some work, reading or doing something productive is kinda like a workout - so i do that for my brain hehe :D

    Also, agreed on the teenage thing, god am I gona miss my metabolism when I am older lol
  • JulieG1443
    JulieG1443 Posts: 43
    YES this is me in a nutshell, partly because I think my muscles are screaming FEEEED MEEE and also admittedly boredom and klooking for a void to fill!!

    I've learnt going for a leisurely walk, doing some work, reading or doing something productive is kinda like a workout - so i do that for my brain hehe :D

    Also, agreed on the teenage thing, god am I gona miss my metabolism when I am older lol

    I always used to think my metabolism was slow because I was so overweight as a child (6+ stone heavier) lol but now it's like I'm having a total hungry day and my hormones are messing me up so I've had chocolate today already! Might walk on the treadmill on a high incline for 30 minutes or something just to make myself feel better!..

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